


Take This Feeling, Make It Grow

by superqueerdanvers



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, F/F, Fluff, Getting Together, Horseback Riding, Horses
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-08
Updated: 2020-05-08
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:54:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24069211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/superqueerdanvers/pseuds/superqueerdanvers
Summary: Kara is putting her pony away after a ride when a loose horse comes running down the barn aisle. Basically an AU where Kara and Lena are horse girls who meet at the barn.
Relationships: Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Comments: 4
Kudos: 74





	Take This Feeling, Make It Grow

**Author's Note:**

> Title is from the song "Don't Let Go" from "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron"

Kara had just finished picking out her pony Dorothy’s hooves when another horse came trotting down the aisle, his saddle conspicuously empty. She stepped into the aisle and reached for the reins. “Whoooa, easy boy. Eeeeasy,” she said in a low voice.

The horse continued to prance in place, but let her take his reins. As she held his reins and stroked his neck, Kara looked the horse over. He was beautiful – tall, with a sleek chestnut coat and a wide white blaze running down his nose. Gradually, he calmed down and stopped fidgeting. “Where’s your rider?” Kara wondered aloud. She glanced over at Dorothy to check she was still tied, then led the chestnut down the aisle the way he’d come.

A woman walked stiffly into the barn from the direction of the outdoor arena. She wore black tall boots, dark green full seat breeches with a contrasting tan seat, a simple black helmet, and a puffy black vest over a green cableknit sweater. She would have looked elegant if she hadn’t been covered in mud. “Oh, you caught him! My hero!”

Kara grinned. “No problem! You’re his human, I take it?”

The woman nodded. “Yeah, this is Achilles. He spooked at a bird, and I didn’t stay on. Obviously. I’m Lena, by the way.” She held out her hand.

“Kara.” She shook Lena’s hand, meeting her eyes, and…wow. Lena had the most stunning, bright green eyes Kara had ever seen. For a moment, she could only stare.

“Uh, I can take him back now.”

“Oh! Right.” Kara let go of Lena’s hand and passed her Achilles’ reins. As Lena turned to go back to the arena, Kara asked, “Are you okay to ride?”

“Oh, yeah. A bit stiff, and I’ll definitely pay for it tomorrow, but I didn’t hit my head or anything. I’ll be fine.”

“I’m almost done putting my horse away. I can watch the rest of your ride, just in case.”

“You don’t need to do that. I’m usually pretty good at riding out his spooks, and I’ll keep an eye out for any more birds,” Lena protested.

“Just give me a minute to put my horse’s blanket on and untie her, and then I’ll come down with you.”

“Really, I’m fine—“

Kara put her hands on her hips. “You already fell off once today. I don’t want you to fall off again. At least, not without someone there to catch Achilles and make sure you’re okay. Now I’m going to blanket Dorothy, and then I’m going to walk down to the arena with you and watch the rest of your ride.”

Lena shrugged. “All right, if it’s that important to you.”

“It is.”

About half an hour later, Lena, Kara, and Achilles walked back to Achilles’ stall. As Lena unbridled Achilles, put his halter on, and tied him to the door, Kara commented, “You looked really good on him.”

“Except for falling off, you mean?” Lena said with a self-deprecating smirk.

“Everyone falls off sometimes. And he doesn’t look like an easy horse to ride.”

“You can say that again!” Lena laughed. “I mean, he tries hard; it’s not that he’s _bad_ , but…well, he’s a three-year-old OTTB.”

“Ah.” Kara nodded, remembering her own experiences with young off-the-track Thoroughbreds. They were used to racing, so they were very inexperienced with other styles of riding, and they tended to be skittish and high-strung. “That explains it. Still, you ride him well.”

“Thanks.” Lena smiled at Kara for a moment before turning back to Achilles and undoing his girth. She groaned as she reached up to take the saddle off.

“Want me to get that?” Kara asked, stepping into the stall.

“Oh, would you? I guess I’m more sore than I thought.”

Kara grinned and pulled the large black dressage saddle and the white saddle pad off Achilles’ back. Her phone buzzed, but she ignored it. “I can put these away for you, too, if you want. Do you keep them in the boarder tack room?”

Lena nodded. “My hero! There’s a label on his saddle rack, so it should be pretty easy to find. Thank you so much!”

“Really, it’s no big deal!” _Buzz._

When Kara returned from the tack room, Lena was blanketing Achilles. Kara grabbed her helmet and boot bags from in front of Dorothy’s stall, then leaned against the wall to change her boots. She’d already put her helmet away, but she was still wearing her riding boots. “How long have you been riding?”

Lena grinned as she untied Achilles and stepped out of his stall, closing the door behind her. “The classic barn get-to-know-you question! Years. I started riding as a little girl, and just never stopped. Discovered the Intercollegiate Dressage Association in college, fell in love with dressage, and here I am. You?”

“I got into riding when my sister did – I think I was in like fourth grade? She did eventing all through high school, so I did it with her. She stopped riding in college, and I kept going.” _Buzz._

“You do eventing?”

“I used to – now I’m more dressage. Jumping was never really my thing, and my horse isn’t really up to it anyway.”

“Oh, can I meet your horse?”

“Of course!” Kara beamed and led the way. “This is Dorothy.”

The fluffy dark-brown-and-white pinto pony picked her head up at the sound of her name, then promptly went back to eating her hay. Kara grimaced internally at the poop stains she hadn’t been able to brush out earlier. Remembering Achilles’ gleaming coat, she was suddenly self-conscious of her scruffy pony. She might have been self-conscious about her faded pink sweatshirt and worn tan breeches, too, if it weren’t for the mud covering Lena’s stylish clothes.

“She’s adorable!”

“You think so?”

“Of course! God, I bet you’re so cute together.”

Kara felt her cheeks go hot, and she glanced down with an awkward giggle. _Buzz buzz!_ She sighed and checked her phone. “Oh, crap. I forgot I was supposed to meet my sister for coffee. I have to go!”

“Okay, well, it was nice to meet you,” Lena replied.

“Nice to meet you too!” Kara stuffed her phone into her pocket, grabbed her things, and hurried out of the barn.

* * *

Kara arrived at the coffee shop 20 minutes late and still wearing her barn clothes. Her sister Alex, nursing a coffee, raised an eyebrow. “I hope you have a good excuse for being late!” she teased.

“A woman fell off. I was helping her and watching the rest of her ride to make sure she was okay.”

“What happened?”

“Her horse spooked. He’s a really nice horse – this gorgeous chestnut Thoroughbred – just green and nervous. And she’s an amazing rider! She handled his nervousness really well – aside from the time she fell off, obviously, but I mean, it happens. You know?”

Alex nodded, grinning at her sister’s enthusiasm. Kara continued, “And her equitation! The way she sits deep in the saddle, and keeps her back straight and shoulders back – God, I wish I could ride like that! It’s beautiful!”

Kara had been working hard to break her habit of leaning forward and perching rather than sitting in the saddle, and she had improved a lot, but when she got nervous, her instinct was still to hunch forward.

“Does this amazing rider with the gorgeous horse have a name?”

“Lena! And she likes Dorothy, too! She called her adorable and said she thinks we’d be cute together!”

“Of course she likes Dorothy; everyone likes Dorothy. She’s the cutest pony at the barn. You should see if she wants to go riding together sometime,” Alex suggested.

“Oh yeah! I’ll text her—“ Kara pulled out her phone and froze. “I didn’t get her number.”

Alex laughed and shook her head. “Then just ask her next time you see her at the barn! By the way, were you going to order anything?”

Kara’s stomach growled. “Oh yeah.” She got up and went to the counter.

* * *

It was about a week and a half later when Kara next saw Lena. She walked into the tack room to put away Dorothy’s tack and found Lena cleaning Achilles’s bridle. Kara lit up. “Lena! Hi!”

Lena turned and smiled at her. “Kara, my hero! How have you been? How’s Dorothy?”

Kara set down the saddle, laid her girth and saddle pad on top of it, and brought the bridle over to the sink. “She’s good – we’re good! We were working on leg yields and trot lengthenings today. How are you feeling after your fall?”

“I was sore for a few days, but nothing major, and I’m fine now.”

“Oh, that’s good!” Kara put some saddle soap on a sponge and began cleaning her bridle. “How’s Achilles?”

“He’s good! He hasn’t dumped me since last time I saw you – not that he’d actually do anything particularly bad or try to dump me. He’s a good boy, just nervous. And athletic enough to do some truly spectacular leaps when he’s scared.”

Kara laughed. “You should’ve seen this horse I rode in high school. One time a plastic bag blew into the arena, and he jumped sideways halfway across the arena! I honestly have no idea how I managed to stay on.”

Lena rinsed the saddle soap off her hands, wiped her hands dry on her breeches – dark blue with pale gray knee patches, today -- and hung her bridle on the hook labeled “Achilles – Lena Luthor.” “I have to go, but it was really nice to see you again. I hope we can see each other more often in the future!”

“Oh! On that note, can I have your number? Or I can give you my number, or…” Kara drifted off awkwardly, her heart suddenly racing.

“Of course! I can put my number into your phone, if you have it with you,” Lena replied.

“Yeah!” Kara hurriedly wiped off her hands, pulled out her phone, and handed it to Lena.

Lena typed in her name and phone number, then returned the phone. As she handed it back, her fingers brushed Kara’s hand. A shiver went down Kara’s spine, but it wasn’t a bad feeling.

* * *

A couple weeks passed, and Kara saw Lena at the barn often – sometimes planned, sometimes not. They talked while mucking stalls, cleaning tack, and grooming their horses, and when they realized Dorothy’s calmness seemed to have a good influence on Achilles, they made it a habit to ride together.

* * *

One afternoon, as they walked to the parking lot after putting their horses away, Kara turned to Lena. “Hey, so my sister and I have this game night with our friends, and I was wondering if you wanted to come? I mean, only if you want to, no pressure or anything, but I’d really like to have you and…” she rambled.

Lena smiled and touched Kara’s elbow. Kara’s heart did a flip. “I’d love to come. When is it?”

“Oh! Good! It’s, um, on Saturday. We usually start at 8 pm, but sometimes it changes depending on people’s schedules. I can text you the details.”

“Great! I’ll see you on Saturday then!”

Lena’s dark hair, loose and messy after her ride, blew in her face, and she brushed it back behind her ear. Her eyes sparkled in the sunlight.

“Yeah, see you Saturday.”

* * *

Kara was pretty sure her brain short-circuited when she opened her door and saw Lena Saturday night. She took in her high ponytail, sleek black leather jacket, black skinny jeans, and elegant black heeled boots. Had she ever seen Lena not wearing barn clothes? Not that her barn clothes were exactly casual, either… As Kara let her in, Lena took off her jacket to reveal a flowy, _low-cut_ , purple blouse. And wow, those skinny jeans were tight. “I hope I’m not late!” she said with a smile.

Kara adjusted her glasses. “Yeah, no, you’re good! We’re still waiting for a couple more people.”

She led the way to the sofas, where Alex, Kelly, James, J’onn, and Brainy already sat. Before long, Nia and Winn arrived, and they started to play. Nia and Brainy won charades, but Lena kicked everyone’s ass at Trivial Pursuit. Alex narrowly beat James at a particularly ruthless game of Uno.

Kara usually did well at game night, but tonight she was distracted. Her eyes kept straying from her cards to Lena, Lena’s cheekbones, Lena’s eyes, Lena’s lips. The way Lena’s brow furrowed when she focused, the way Lena’s eyes crinkled when she laughed. The way her updo and loose blouse showed off her collarbones and the place her neck met her shoulders.

* * *

Alex was helping Kara do the dishes after Lena and their other friends had left when she commented, “So. Lena is nice.”

Kara beamed. “She is, isn’t she? I knew you would like her!”

“She’s cute too. I see why you have a crush on her.”

Kara flushed. “I don’t – she’s not – I mean she is but –“ She lost her grip on the plate she was washing, and it shattered on the floor. “I don’t have a crush on Lena!”

Alex smirked slightly and bent down to help Kara clean up the broken plate. “Sure you don’t.”

Kara found some rubber gloves and a paper bag, and she and Alex picked up the pieces and put them in the bag. Luckily, they weren’t too small. Kara stood up. “Wait…do I have a crush on Lena?”

She started to pace. “I mean, she’s _gorgeous_ , and brilliant, and she wants so badly to make the world a better place, who _wouldn’t_ like her? Which means maybe this is just a normal reaction to how amazing she is, and I don’t have a crush.”

“You also haven’t shut up about her since you met,” Alex added, carefully putting the bag of plate pieces in the garbage. “And you couldn’t keep your eyes off her tonight.”

Kara sat down at the island and sighed. “God, she looked beautiful.” She looked up and met Alex’s eyes. “Oh my God, I have a crush on Lena. What do I do?!”

Alex pulled out a stool and sat down. “Well, do you want to do anything about it?”

“Like what?”

“Like…start a relationship with her?”

“Oh! I…uh…I mean…yes.”

Alex smiled. “Then you should tell her how you feel.”

* * *

Kara spent the next week thinking about how to tell Lena how she felt. She couldn’t just throw something like that out into a casual conversation – “Hey Lena, thanks for helping muck out Dorothy’s stall. Oh by the way, I have an enormous crush on you!” And she _definitely_ shouldn’t just text her, no matter how much easier it sounded. Then she saw the weather forecast for the weekend – sunny and warm, perfect for riding outside. She wouldn’t even need a jacket. And it hadn’t rained recently, so the trails wouldn’t be muddy. She texted Lena and invited her on a trail ride.

Kara cleaned her boots and all her tack before the trail ride. She carefully picked even the tiniest bits of hay from Dorothy’s mane and tail and groomed her until her coat gleamed. She pulled her hair back in a neat braid, and she wore a navy blue V-neck t-shirt and her favorite dark red breeches. Lena wore a black polo shirt and deep purple breeches.

The weather was as beautiful as expected, and Dorothy was on reasonably good behavior. Achilles, on the other hand, was not. He was young and had not been on many trail rides before, and every leaf blowing in the breeze startled him. Lena had her hands full just keeping him from bolting. Kara quickly realized that this was not the time or place to tell Lena her feelings.

* * *

Later, as Kara untacked and brushed Dorothy, she thought about what to do next. She’d missed her chance at a romantic trail ride confession. Should she just ask Lena for another trail ride and try again? But it might be months or more before Achilles would be calm enough on a trail ride for Lena to focus on anything other than him. And Kara had already psyched herself up to tell Lena how she felt. She took a deep breath and made a decision.

Heart pounding, Kara walked over to Achilles’s stall. “Lena, can I talk to you for a minute?”

Lena frowned at the nervous expression on Kara’s face and stepped out of the stall. “Of course. What is it?”

“Lena, I like you. A lot. And not in a friend way. I’m bi, and you’re really pretty, and smart, and kind, and an amazing rider, and an even better friend, and I’ve been scared to death of telling you this, because I don’t want to lose you, but…”

Lena took her hand. “I like you, too. I’ve liked you since the day we met, when you caught Achilles and then stuck around to make sure I was okay. Kara Danvers, you are my hero.”

Kara met Lena’s eyes. They captivated her as much as they had when they’d first met, but Lena didn’t hold her gaze. Kara’s heart skipped a beat as she realized Lena was looking at her lips. Lena cupped her cheek in her hand, and Kara closed her eyes as Lena leaned in to kiss her.


End file.
